The bill would see the prevention of biological males from participating in female-only athletic activities extended to the collegiate level.
HB 23 provides protections for female athletes through legal action if they have had opportunities, safety, or competitive standing affected by non-compliance from schools.
“I am proud to announce that, once again, my colleagues in the Legislature are standing with me to protect fairness in women’s sports!” said Swanson in a statement.
“My colleagues and I will fight for our young athletes!”
There are seven Republican representatives who did not sign on as co-author, not including Speaker Dade Phelan (R-Beaumont).
Those seven are Reps. Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock), Angie Chen Button (R-Richardson), Charlie Geren (R-Fort Worth), Todd Hunter (R-Corpus Christi), Stan Lambert (R-Abilene), Morgan Meyer (R-Dallas), Mike Schofield (R-Katy).
This bill is aimed to work in conjunction with legislation passed last year, which also received 75 joint or co-authors, to prevent biological males from competing in girls’ sports from the seventh to 12th grades.
The Senate has also proposed its own “Save Women’s Sports Act” with Sen. Mayes Middleton’s (R-Wallisville) Senate Bill (SB) 649.
SB 649 adds provisions for situations wherein an entity seeking legal action to prevent the state from enforcing a statute related to regulating athletic participation based on biological sex would have to pay the costs and attorney fees of the prevailing party.
“Women have fought tooth-and-nail to enshrine their right to equal opportunity in high school and college sports.” Swanson said in a statement.
“We must not lose ground and allow biological males to endanger the safety and advancement opportunities for young women in college and in UIL sports.”
###
Disclosure: Unlike almost every other media outlet, The Texan is not beholden to any special interests, does not apply for any type of state or federal funding, and relies exclusively on its readers for financial support. If you’d like to become one of the people we’re financially accountable to, click here to subscribe.
Cameron Abrams
Cameron Abrams is a reporter for The Texan. After graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Tabor College and a Master’s Degree from University of the Pacific, Cameron is finishing his doctoral studies where his research focuses on the postmodern philosophical influences in education. In his free time, you will find him listening to a podcast while training for an endurance running event.
